Hope Never Fails
by Washington.Brunette
Summary: Hermione's POV, Set three years after the death of Voldemort. Hermione abandons magic before she is forced to rejoin the wizarding world for greater good.
1. History Lesson

I work a dismal job, doing something I hate. Every day I unlock the doors, fold clothes and smile at customers that I do not care about. I smile when they talk to me, thinking about how desperately I want to go home, and act as if I care about their lives. I nod politely when they ask me if this shirt looks flattering and shake my head vigorously when they ask me if these pants make them look fat. Occasionally I meet people that I like, and tell them my honest opinion if they ask me. I will share small details of my life, like my age, my name, stories about my daughter, and then I will keep to myself, longing for the day to be over. These are my days.

Today is no different. I unlock the doors at 7:55 am, put my nametag on my blouse and get ready for the day. As I fold some jeans into neat rectangles, I find my brain wandering the way it always does in the morning. I think about how hard it is, even after three years, to leave Delila with the sitter Emma Lee. I remember the look on Delila's face as I handed her to Emma. "Emma! Emma can we play magic island today?" she asked, a large grin on her face as she refers to the game where Emma uses Delila's amazing imagination to create an island of fun and games. I find it ironic that Delila's favorite game involves something that I used to love. Magic used to be my passion. I was top of my class at Hogwarts, destined to be the next big thing.

I am part of the reason that Lord Voldemort fell. My wand, my skills, I was amazing. I was great. Fantastic actually. We all were. Then, in the moment that it took for me to decipher the small little plus sign on the stick, my life changed. Suddenly, my friends were gone. My life had changed. I spent the next three years rebelling against everything that had gotten me to that point. I refused to continue my education, I found a job at a fast food restaurant and I gave up magic, but I never got rid of my wand. It's still in my sock drawer, pushed towards the back in a small, but very well hidden compartment that hasn't been touched in two and a half years.

Eventually I gave up at the fast food place, it was too disgusting for me to stay. So, I went to work for an middle aged woman, Hilda, who welcomed with me with open arms. I was getting big when I went to see her in November, which was my 6th month. Hilda became my rock. She gave me a four-month maternity leave, with pay, and helped me to find an apartment on Shady Pines Place, which is coincidentally just a few blocks from where my friend Harry grew up. I walk by his old house on Privet Drive occasionally just to see where he grew up. When I do, I feel like I can see him again, even though it's been three and a half years since he left my life.

Maybe he tried to find me after I left, but I can never be certain. I left Diagon Alley in the middle of the night, leaving just a note for the few people I had left in my life. I fled and never looked back. By the time I was due, it had been seven months since I had talked to anyone in my old life. I had made pseudo-friends who could never fill the void of the life I left behind. I spent my days living in agony over how I was going to pay for this new baby, along with myself. I was so consumed in my thoughts one night that I barely noticed when my water broke. I called Hilda who drove me to the hospital and was there was Delila was born. She gave me the idea to take out the "h" on Delilah to make her unique. So, that's how I named my baby girl. That was the night that I became a strong person. I left my fears at the hospital and vowed to do whatever it took to take care of my baby girl.

Hilda was there for me when others weren't and soon she retired, giving me sole ownership of the boutique when she left. Now I was the owner of Studio 220, where women of all shapes and sizes came to try on designer jeans they couldn't afford or fit into just so they could say they had tried on "the best pair of jeans, but I decided against them. Damn I regret it!" I had heard it all. The girl that wanted to fit in but couldn't afford to, so she pretended she had forgotten her wallet in the car, the girl that couldn't quite squeeze into those seven's so she said she was too tired to try things on, and the girls that had neither problem and bought ten pairs just to feel better about themselves. I dealt with all of them, and learned how to turn my brain off to pretend I cared about each of their problems.

Really, all I had to do when listening to them was nod while thinking about my baby girl. Today is no different. A customer starts to rant about how much she wants to impress a boy in her college class and I shut down. My mind wanders to my most precious belonging. Delila has grown up so much in the past year or so, and she really looks like me now. She has just a trace of her dad in her, but her eyes and her hair are mine. Her lips are where I see her father, and my heart breaks every time she smiles.

The day winds to a close and I shut down the register, emptying my tills and depositing the money into a safe in the back room. I tug on the blinds to pull the shut, feeling my arms ache from exhaustion. I use a key to lock the doors and smile at the memory of spells that could have done the work in half the time in the olden days; that's what I called the days when magic was involved in my life. The days before Delila.

I catch the 5 o'clock trolley to get home and put the coins in the meter when the driver drops me off in front of Emma Lee's house, which is a just minute from my own. I press the doorbell, and give my girl a big hug when she runs to the door to greet me. "Hey baby," I smile, pressing my face into her soft brown curls, smelling her sweetness. "Did you play magic island today?" I give her a big kiss and she laughs a soft, Tinkerbelle laugh. "Yes, Mommy! I went to Fuji today!" she grabs my hand and I smile, ignoring her slight mistake.

"What do I owe you, Emma Lee?" I ask, pulling out my checkbook, but she shakes her head.

"I'll bill you at the end of the week, Hermione. Don't worry about it now." She smiles and I feel a pang of sadness when I hear my name, it brings me back to my golden days. My days of brilliance and fame.

"Thanks, I'll see you tomorrow." I tell her, turning to walk down her entrance to the sidewalk.

Delila and I walk home and I listen to her telling me about her day. How Fuji was beautiful and full of oranges that smelled like pears. She chattered on the entire walk home and I enjoyed every moment of it. We reached the front door of our one story house and I slid the key into the lock, which turned easily. We walked in and Delila stopped talking as the door opened.

There, sitting on my newly upholstered couch is the first person I've seen from my past in three and a half years. There, sitting on my couch is a man with jet black hair, eyes as green as there were the last time I saw them, and a smile as warm as honey on a hot summer's day. Next to him sat the man that made my heart break every time Delila smiled. Next to my old friend Harry sat Ron, my baby's father.

**A/N: Hello all! This is just the beginning. What happens next? Please let me know what you think! I have a few ideas rolling around in my head. I thought of this one day while I was at work, and I'm really excited for the direction this story is headed. Thanks all!**

Disclaimer: These characters are not mine, but JK Rowlings. The plot is mine though!


	2. Waking Up

There is something to be said about fainting. There is this moment, before you are unconscious, when you are confused about what's going on. You understand that you are falling, and you know that you don't have control of your body, but you don't know why, or what for that matter, is going on. I feel all of these things just before I hit the ground and I let myself go into the calm of the darkness.

I wake up on the couch, knowing that I had a bad dream, one that happens every year around this time. The rain that has been never-ending lately reminds me of the drizzly day that I told Ron I was pregnant. The day that my life changed. So, occasionally, I will dream that he comes back into my life, into my small little corner on Shady Pines Place. I stretch out slowly on the couch and my foot hits skin.

"Sorry, Baby!" I mutter, reaching for Delila's soft skin and instead feel hard muscles that could only belong to a man. I sit up immediately and reach for a wand that of course isn't there. Eyes flying open with terror, I look desperately for Delila, who is sitting on her father's lap.

It all comes rushing back to me in a flash of disbelief. Harry and Ron in my apartment. I see Harry sitting at my feet and realize that he was who I had mistakenly thought was Delila.

"Baby, huh?" Harry laughs, giving me a quick once over. "It's been a little too long for you to call me Baby." Harry winks and grabs my hand, which makes my heart break even more. I've missed him so desperately over the past few years that just the memory of him has caused me to venture back to diagon alley on occasion.

I don't know what to say to him as he sits in my apartment so I turn to look at Ron. Ron, who broke me. Ron, who is the painful reminder of why I left the world that I once loved. I watch as he sits on my chair with my daughter on his lap, and it's like they were never separated. He is bouncing Delila up and down on his knee, talking to her as if she's an adult, which she kind of is. Her brilliance isn't lost on me, because she is half mine. I have no doubt that she will be a doctor one day, maybe a surgeon. But for now, she is just a child that is seeing her dad for the first time.

"And so, Delila, what happened after you got to Fuji? Where did you go?" Ron asks, playing with her hair.

"Well," she starts shyly, "We walked on the beach and then I found an apple that smelled like a pear. And so we ate it! And guess what, Ron? It was a pretty good orange." Delila beams with pride as her dad smiles at her.

"Well you certainly have a great imagination!" Ron dotes on her. "Hey, Lila, will you run to the kitchen and grab me a pear please?" He asks her, placing her back on the floor. She nods and runs off to the kitchen. "Make sure it's the prettiest one there!" He calls after her, and then he shifts his attention to me. "Hermione, she's so…she is phenomenal. She is just like you." Ron looks at me as somber as ever, his eyes tugging at my heart strings.

I shift my glance between my two oldest friends, looking desperately for an answer as to why they came here. What were they doing in my corner of the world? No answer comes, so I ask. "Harry," I start, address the person that I am more comfortable with, "Harry, why are you here?" I know that came out snide, and rude, but it was a valid question so I stick to my guns.

"Hermione, aren't you just happy to see us again?" He asks, putting his hand on my knee. I feel the heat from his body close to mine and something inside me breaks.

"Harry, I left the magic world for a reason. Tell me why you are looking me up now, three years from the time I left!" I feel the tears welling behind my eyes and look at Ron, who's smirking. "Don't smirk at us you asshole! You are the reason I left. I left because of you, Ron." My words were meant to sting and I felt a small feeling of satisfaction at his face.

"Hermione, we don't have time to play catch up. We need to do that another day. I know you left because of me, but we are here because of something else. Hermione, we are here because we need you." Ron talks quickly, looking towards the hallway that Delila just walked down, cautious not to mention any of this in front of her.

"Wait," I start, feeling dizzy. "What could you possibly need me for?" I press my head against my palm and breathe in slowly, holding the breath, and then exhaling for a count of five.

"Hermione, we –" Ron starts, but I shush him with a wave of my hand.

"I'm not ready for this, Ron. Give me a minute." I continue my stress-relieving ritual and then sit up, looking once again at Harry. "Okay. Harry, I'm ready, tell me what is going on." I look at him and smile reassuringly, letting him know that I am ready.

Harry draws in his breath and pauses momentarily before starting. "Hermione, it's time for you to rejoin the world. You have to step out of your self-imposed exile and get back into the world of magic, and you need to do it now." Harry's face is somber, but I find myself laughing anyways.

"Harry! I think you're being a bit of a drama king. 'You need to do it now.' What could possibly be so serious that you need me? I haven't used magic in years! I'm doing great here in the muggle world." I laugh again, feeling the tension in my shoulders finally relaxing. Harry and Ron are making me feel like my old self. The carefree one that walked away from magic when she found out she was pregnant.

"Hermione, will you just trust us?" Ron butts in, but he quickly goes quiet after a look from Harry.

Harry grabs my hand. "Hermione, Ron is right, though he should have said it better." He shoots Ron another look. "We need you to come with us because Draco Malfoy is out of Azkaban and he wants your blood. And mine. And Ron's. And some jackass might have let it slip that you now have a child. That you and Ron have a child, so Malfoy has taken a special interest in you and Delila." Harry's voice is low and urgent and the smile slides off my face. My baby. They want my baby, and without magic I am sitting here so exposed I can hardly stand it.

"Harry, how can my rejoining the magic word help with this?" I ask as a feeble attempt to hear something involving me staying in muggle London, but that answer doesn't come.

Ron gets up now and walks to the couch. "Hermione, you know that if one side of a war has magic, but the other doesn't, it's not a war as much as a very biased game of hide and seek. By rejoining the magical world, you get to hold onto the hope that your daughter will grow up knowing her mother." He pulls my wand out of his robes and hands it to me.

I feel the warmth of an electrical current humming below the wood as I grab it cautiously. I look around the room and see Delila's favorite toy. Pointing the wand at the small, black puppy I whisper "Accio, dog." And watch as the animal comes flying into my open palm.

**Okay all, here is chapter two! I was really excited to get so many reviews off of the first chapter. I really hope you guys keep reading, I promise the first glimpse of Harry/Hermione is coming up in the next few chapters. I can't wait for you all to read it! Let me know what you think. **

Disclaimer: The characters, places, etc are not mine. They are JK Rowlings, but the plot is all mine!


	3. Catching Up

The next few days are a blur of colors and sounds. I called my assistant manager at the boutique and told her that due to family emergencies I would have to quit, leaving the bulk of the store to her, with Hilda as the primary owner. I paid Emma Lee for her services and told her that I had to go to London to be with my ailing mother, so I didn't know when I would return but that I was eternally grateful for her services.

Currently I am walking home, letting my mind wander to the moments after I used magic for the first time in years. I walk

As I walk up the walkway leading to my house, I see Harry sitting on my front porch, his eyes drooping from exhaustion, it's obvious that Delila has worn him out.

"Harry!" I tap his shoulder as I reach the edge of the doorway and he opens his eyes wide.

"Your daughter..." he starts, stretching his arms above his head. "Your daughter is non-stop, Hermione. I mean truly a ball of energy." He pushes himself up to his feet and runs a hand absentmindedly down my arm.

I look at him and smile. These last few days are the way my life should have been. I should never have left the inn in Diagon Alley the way I did that night three and a half years ago. I don't regret leaving Ron, who made me miserable during the days after he found out my pregnancy, but I missed Harry desperately in the days after I left.

"Harry," I look at him and my heart melts. "I've missed you so much." I tell him this simply, because it is a fact, something that cannot be changed or altered. "Can I show you something?" I ask him, reaching for his hand. He nods and I grab Delila before dropping her off for the last time at Emma Lee's.

"Emma, I'm so sorry to do this to you, but something came up. Can you watch her for an hour or so?" I beg at Emma's door a few minutes later. Emma smiles and nods.

"Of course! I wanted a chance to say goodbye to my favorite girl! Do you want to take a trip to the magic island one last time?" she asks, reaching for Emma's hand. Delila nods furiously and I smile as she walks into Emma's house.

"I owe you one!" I tell her as she shuts the door.

She gives me a smile and says, "If you're getting laid by that gentleman on the sidewalk then you definitely do!" Emma winks and closes the door.

I walk down the sidewalk with a blush on my face until I reach Harry. Almost absentmindedly, I grab his hand and lead him down the sidewalk. On the way we talk about what happened after our partings. I apologize for leaving in the middle of the night with only a note, telling him it was my biggest regret. I tell him about how I worked at a boutique, and gave up magic because I didn't want to be associated with anything that reminded me of my past. I told him everything significant that had happened to me, which was a pretty short list, and then it was his turn.

"Hermione, I woke up the morning after you left with a note that said 'I'm sorry' and an empty spot in the bed at the Leaky Cauldron that we rented the night before. I woke up after this night of incredible sex with the most amazing girl to find out that she had left.

"I searched for you for weeks, refusing to believe that you would ever just leave like that until I found you. Yes," he said, pausing when I gasped, "I found you working at that silly boutique and I watched you for three days before I realized something, that baby in your belly wasn't mine. It would never be mine, and I couldn't interrupt the life that you had tried so hard to build. So, I walked away, without a glance back because it hurt too bad to think about it."

We had stopped walking long ago, and now I looked Harry in his incredibly green eyes that always saw right through me. We stood on the sidewalk in front of Privet Drive for what seemed like hours, refusing to be the first one to talk, until finally I broke the silence.

"I never stopped thinking about you. Every few months I walk down to the Leaky Cauldron and buy a butterbeer for old time's sake. I think about that last night often. And sometimes, when I'm especially miserable, I walk down here and look at your old place. I know that you didn't like it here, in fact you hated it, but I feel close to you here. I can see you growing up in that house, and sending your crazy aunt Marge through the atrium. Anyways, you should know that I have never regretted anything more than what I did for you." I dropped my gaze and stared at my feet, which were recently manicured and looked pretty damn good if I do say so myself.

"What are we doing here?" Harry said, as if becoming aware of our surroundings for the first time.

"Well, Harry, we are going to the place where I come to relax. We are talking about our past." I roll my eyes and look at him as if he's grown another head.

Harry rolls his eyes back and me and smiles. "No, Hermione. God you're supposed to be so smart but whatever…"Harry mutters under his breath, winking at me when my face betrays my emotions. "Oh come on, Hermione! Ow!" He yells as I hit him in the bicep. "Okay mercy! Hey now! I was just saying, what are we doing here when we could be…somewhere else." He looks at me but I don't pick up on his hint.

"Somewhere else? Where would we go?" I ask, placing my hands on his shoulders.

Harry really rolls his eyes this time. "Let me show you," he says as he grabs my hand and turns.

The sensation of apparation never really grew on me, and this time is now different. It's even worse when I don't have a chance to take a deep breath beforehand, so now I am struggling to breathe as the trip seems to span on and on forever. Finally, just before I pass out from discomfort and lack of oxygen, my feet hit solid ground and buckle. Before I fall to the floor, strong hands catch me.

"Thanks," I murmur, recognizing immediately that I am in my own house.

Harry's arms embrace my from behind and I smile when he places his chin on my shoulder. "No problem," he mutters, letting his hands slip to my waist. "I'll catch you whenever you fall." He spins me around so we are facing each other, and before I can get another word out his lips are on mine. He kisses me urgently, removing my blouse with ease. I tug on his shirt and soon clothes are scattered around the apartment. Harry kisses my legs, my knees and my stomach, slowly exploring every inch of me and I love it. Our bodies mesh and soon we are together in a way that we haven't been in three and a half years.

After I wrap myself in a sheet and use my wand to clean the apartment, which is something that I haven't done in so long I can barely remember the spells to accomplish it. I dress quickly, and shake Harry awake. I remember the last time we did this he slept for hours, which simply won't do since I have to pick up Delila. It's already been an hour and a half, and I promised Emma Lee it would only be an hour.

"Harry, it's time to get up!" I tug the green comforter off my bed and reveal Harry's lower half. I can't help but stare, but a small cough interrupts my thought process.

"Hermione, we can do it again, but you will have to do more than just stare." Harry smiled, and pulled me in for a kiss. His lips were soft and welcoming. I pulled away and gave him a quick second kiss for good measure.

We dress quickly, stopping to kiss on occasion and I can't help but think that this is the way it would have been if I never would have left in the first place. We would be a happy little family. Me, Delila and Harry. Ron would see her every other weekend, but it would be us the rest of the time. And just like that, my conscious mind catches up to the events of the last hour. Ron. He would have never let this happen. Oh, he is going to be so pissed when he find out.

But why? I argue with myself. He has no reason to be. It's not like he tried to find me after I left, or like he even wanted our child. Ron and I would never worked out because when I told him he was pregnant, he asked me to go to the healer and have her aborted. As soon as he said that, I packed my bags and left. That's when I found Harry, walking the streets of muggle London one night. We talked, and eventually ended up in bed together. That's when I left.

Harry reaches over and kisses my neck softly, which is precisely the moment that Ron chooses to burst into my house, without even a knock to warn me of the impending doom that he is about to bring into my life.

**A/N: Hey guys! So let me know what you thought! I'm going to elaborate a little more on the history and timing of the past in the next chapter. Gah I'm so excited, it's like the ideas just keep coming. Review and let me know what you think!**


	4. Repercussions

In moments when I feel overwhelmed, I find myself thinking about the days leading up to my sudden departure from the wizarding world. So when Ron comes barging into my apartment as Harry's lips are pressed against my neck, I naturally block out what's going on around me and think about my final days of glory.

The rain was coming down in sheets and I felt the weight of the world bearing down on me. Today was the day I had to do it. Ron had to know what happened. I took careful steps in silently preparing my bags, packing them with the aid of the muffliato charm, which put a slight buzzing in Ron's ears so he couldn't hear me thumping around. I tossed everything I could into one of my bags by using an undetectable extension charm on it. After shoving everything I possibly could into the trunk, I threw my invisibility cloak over it and walked out of the bedroom into the sitting area, silently lifting the charm.

"Hey, Hermione," Ron looked up from his cooking and smiled. "So I couldn't help but noticed you put the muffliato charm on me. Mind telling me why?" He asked me politely, and my heart breaks. I have to tell him.

"Ron, I don't want to be the complete picture of a cliché, but maybe you should sit down for a little bit?" I worded it as a question, but Ron knew better than you argue. He moved to our living room and I followed, cleaning the kitchen with a sweep of my wand. The pots scrubbed themselves and went up to dry and the noodles he had worked so hard to cook were on a plate wrapped in foil.

I reached the couch where Ron was sitting, and went to the chair, choosing very delicately not to sit next to him. My heart was slamming against my ribcage and my palms were sweating furiously. I pressed my hands together, praying that I could get these next three words out.

"Ron," I started, pulling in another deep breath. I had to be hyperventilating. That couldn't be good for the baby. Maybe I should tell him tomorrow.

"Is this about the dinner tonight? Because I swear if you complain that all I make is pasta rigatoni, I will break up with you right now." Ron says, the corners of his mouth bending upwards into a smile.

I shake my head, looking at the carpet, realizing that I never really liked this color. "No, Ron, it's not about the pasta." A tear leaks out of my eye and soon I'm sobbing.

"Hermione, sweetheart, what's wrong? Please just tell me what it is. It can't be so incredibly awful that you can't tell me. You can tell me anything." He wraps his arms around me, and rubs my back with his hand softly, which annoys me to no end. Now is not the time for this, now is the time to tell him.

"Okay, Ron," I hesitate as if I am avoiding jumping into cold water on a cloudy day. "Ron, I'm preg-I'm pregnant," I finally choke out the words between sobs.

Ron rubs his ears, checking to see if they have wax in them and he just misheard. "You're what? I'm sorry I think I heard wrong love. I thought you just said you were pregnant." He smiles and looks at me, expecting me to refute what he just said, but I just bury my head in my hands and cry harder.

After minutes that seemed to last as long as hours, I look up at him, wiping my eyes. Ron looks pale, even his freckles seem to have lighted by a few shades.

"Ron?" I sputter, waiting for him to move. "Ron? Ron!" I get up and shake him, trying to get his attention. "Ron! What do you have to say about this?" I look at him, waiting for an answer that will never come.

Finally, he speaks. He's so quiet that I have to ask myself if he is actually talking, or if it's just my imagination going wild. But, no, he's repeating himself, only louder this time. "Is it mine?" He asks, staring blankly into my eyes.

Fury like nothing I have felt before rises inside of me. It's white-hot tongue licks my intestines and crawls up my throat. "Of COURSE it's yours!" I yell, hitting my head with my open palm as hard as I can. "What? Do you think I'm some kind of slut, sleeping around on you? Ron, we are living together, that's a pretty serious commitment. We've been together since the fall of Voldemort nearly a year ago. OF COURSE IT'S YOURS! How _dare_ you ask me that!" I am in a blind rage, literally seeing spots when Ron says something worse.

"Jeez, jeez, calm down!" He mutters, and then it happens. "So, you're going to get rid of it. When should I pick you up from the healer's? I mean you can't apparate for a few days after." He looks at me expectantly, waiting for a reply.

It's as if a pin dropped, the silence is so overwhelming. My brain went from over-drive to barely functioning in seconds. Here I was, sitting here on my couch, telling my boyfriend that I was prego, and he was telling me that I needed to have an abortion, like I was throwing out a piece of trash. The world slowed for a moment when he said that, until I caught up with what had just happened.

"I'm not getting rid of it, Ron." I told him quietly. "You might not want this baby, but I do. He or she is half mine, and growing inside of me." I look at him, waiting for his reply, when suddenly I know what I have to do. "I'm leaving you, Ron." I tell him, summoning my bag and invisibility cloak. In this moment, I am not thinking of my past, but instead I think of my baby. I don't feel sad, just really mad. And hopeful for my future with my baby.

Ron looked away from his hands and his eyes flash with anger. "Oh, what, so you planned it like this? You knew that once you told me, you would leave? Well fuck you, Hermione! Fuck you for doing this!" He slammed his fist down on the coffee table and it left little spider webs stemming from where his fist hit.

"This, Ron, is why I packed my bags. To be on the safe side. Apparently I overestimated your ability to act like a grown up in adult situations. Shame on me, Ron. Shame on me." I picked my bag up and walked out of Ron's door, and out of his life, without so much as a cursory glance back.

Now, as Ron walks in on the first tender moment I've shared with any man in at least 18 months, I feel that I'm going to re-live those last few moments with Ron all over again. The fight, the drama, the tears, they're all going to be repeated.

As the door opens, Harry pulls his lips from my neck and mutters, "Shit," under his breath. I move my body closer to him, and grab his hand, giving it a quick squeeze, before I let it go.

"What are you two doing?" Ron asks suspiciously, eyeing my guilty look. Apparently not event here years could change his ability to read my expression. "Why do you look so guilty, Hermione?" He shifts is gaze to Harry.

"Man, you're being paranoid. Just calm down. Nothing's going on." Harry shrugs and moves to the refrigerator. "Hermione do you have anything to eat?" He changes the subject just a little too quickly, which Ron notices quickly.

"What the hell did you two do?" He accuses angrily.

"Ron, calm down. We didn't do anything," I tell him, walking into the kitchen and opening some cabinets. "Harry, we have some spinach and jalapeño dip if you'd like that. I can cut up some bread and toast it if you want." I open a baguette and start slicing the bread.

"You two slept together!" His tone is cold and hard.

Harry closes the door to the fridge and takes a deep breath while I stand there with my mouth hanging open.

"Wh – wh –why? Why would you jump to that conclusion?" I sputter, still aghast that he figured it out so quickly.

"You're after-sex food is spinach and jalapeno dip! You crave it! Don't lie to me, I know that it's true Hermione. You might think I'm stupid, but I am not an idiot." Ron gives me his best I-know-what-you-did-so-don't-lie-to-me look, before turning to Harry. "Really, Harry? Really? You've seen her for two seconds and you're already in bed with her? If there were a male word for slut, you would be it. And Hermione, you have a baby! With me! Where is Delila?" Ron's eyes flashed dangerously.

"She's with the sitter! Don't you call me a bad mom when you are worse; you are an absentee dad! That's so much worse than what I did." I slam the knife into the cutting board and it lands point down, standing straight up.

"Fine, we are both guilty of something. We both made mistakes, but that's part of life. So, I can't speak to what you do since you're a big girl, but I can make my own steps to correcting my mistakes. Hermione, I want visitation rights for Lila, and I want to take her for the weekend?" His voice goes up at the end of his sentence, so I'm guessing this is as close to a request that I will get from Ron. I'm shocked that he changed his mind so quickly, but he has always been the unpredictable type.

I'm torn, on one hand, Ron has never even spent a day with her by himself, so I don't know if he could take a weekend filled with naps, bedtimes, and outings. On the other hand, it's clear that he wants to be a part of her life and he deserves it, if that's what he wants. And, with Malfoy and the rest of the old Death Eaters after us, Ron would be a better guard than myself. I'm still trying to recover all of my magic after three years and I am rusty. Granted, I am still pretty damn good, but Ron has better instincts than me at the moment.

"Fine, Ron. I would love to have you look after her this weekend. She is undoubtedly safer with you than me right now, with the Death Eaters after us. But just so you know, she's a pill. Don't expect this to be easy." I smile slightly, feeling glad that Delila will have a chance to spend time with her father, while I have a chance to spend time with her father's best friend. God, that sounds bad! Oh well, it's the truth.

Ron nods solemnly. "I understand. I'll apparate if I have any problems. Thanks, Hermione." Ron walks over to me for the first time since the argument started and hugs me. "I know this isn't easy," he whispers to me.

"Just know that if she even scrapes her knee, I will kill you," I whisper back, only slightly exaggerating. I hear Ron chuckle nervously. "Okay!" I say, pulling away from him and grabbing his shoulders with my hands. "Let's go get Delila!"

I grab her overnight bag, handing it to Ron who buckles with the weight. "Get used to it, soldier!" I laugh and lead the way to pick up my baby with Harry at my side and Ron bringing up the rear.

**Hello all! So...what did you think? Some of you are probably wondering where the action is going to come in, and I promise the next chapter or two will be action packed, and full of twists and turns. Please let me know if you think its good, bad or ugly and leave me a review! To my few loyal readers/reviewers, thank you! I love getting feedback, so hit that blue button and tell me what you think**


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